Final exams kareeb aa rahe the.
Aur coaching ka atmosphere…
ab pehle jaisa bilkul nahi raha tha.
Pehle jahan laughter hota tha…
ab silence tha.
Pehle jahan doubts discuss hote the…
ab marks compare hote the.
Har jagah ek hi cheez feel ho rahi thi—
competition.
Notice board ke saamne bheed lagi thi.
Aaj phir test ka result laga tha.
Mai dheere se aage badha…
Maine list ko dekha…
Roll number dhunda…
Score: 578/ 720
Ek second ke liye usne relief feel kiya.
"Almost 600…"
Par agle hi second…
uski nazar top ranks par gayi.
1st – 648
2nd – 632
3rd – Ananya – 621
Mai ruk gaya.
"Ananya… 621…"
Mere andar kuch halka sa shift hua.
Yeh jealousy nahi thi…
Par ek ajeeb sa pressure tha.
"Main peeche reh raha hoon kya?"
Yeh thought mere dimaag mein chipak gaya.
Break ke time Ananya uske paas aayi—
"Hey! 578… that's great!"
Maine forced smile diya—
"Hmm… thik hai."
"Thik? It's a big jump!"
Ananya genuinely khush thi.
Maine aankhon se bachate hue bola—
"Tum 621 ho…"
Silence.
Ananya ne usse dekha—
"So?"
Mere paas answer nahi tha.
Mai khud nahi samajh pa raha tha—
kyun mai usse disturb ho raha hoon.
Us din ghar aakar…
Mai seedha table par baith gaya.
Maine apni marks sheet nikali…
Aur stare karne laga.
"578...…"
Phir maine Ananya ka score yaad kiya—
"621…"
Phir toppers—
"648…"
Numbers mere dimaag mein ghoomne lage.
Pehli baar…
Mujhe focus khud se hat kar
dusron par shift ho gaya tha.
Raat ko maine diary kholi…
Aur likha—
"Kya main enough nahi hoon?"
Yeh line likhte hi mai ruk gaya.
"Enough…?"
Maine pen table par rakha…
Aur chair se uthkar mirror ke saamne gaya.
"Jab tu 312 pe tha…
tab tu fight kar raha tha."
"Jab tu 528 pe aaya…
tab tu proud tha."
"Ab 578 pe aake tu doubt kar raha hai?"
Silence.
Maine apni aankhon mein dekha…
Aur dheere se bola—
"Problem marks nahi hai…
problem comparison hai."
Us moment mein usse realization hit hua—
"Main race galat logon ke saath daud raha hoon."
Usne deep breath li…
Aur khud se kaha—
"Mujhe kisi aur ko beat nahi karna…
mujhe apne best version ko beat karna hai."
Next day coaching mein…
Mera mindset thoda clear tha…
par pressure ab bhi exist karta tha.
Class ke baad Ananya uske paas aayi—
"Kal thoda off lag rahe the…"
Maine honestly bola—
"Haan… comparison ho gaya tha."
Ananya ne sir hilaaya—
"Hota hai."
Phir woh thoda serious hui—
"Par ek baat yaad rakhna…"
"NEET ek rank ki race nahi hai…
yeh ek cut-off ki fight hai."
Mai dhyaan se sun raha tha.
"Tumhe mujhe beat karne ki zarurat nahi hai…
tumhe apna best dene ki zarurat hai."
Yeh line simple thi…
Par powerful.
Mere dimaag mein clarity aane lagi.
Us din ke baad…
usne apne room ki wall par ek line likhi—
"No competition. Only improvement."
Ab jab bhi result aata…
Mai sirf ek cheez check karta—
"Kya main kal se better hoon?"
Agar answer "yes" hota—
toh woh satisfied hota.
Agar "no" hota—
toh woh reason find karta.
Gradually…
Pressure kam hone laga.
Focus wapas aane laga.
Ek din mock test ke baad…
Mai aur Ananya dono bahar khade the.
"Score?" Ananya ne poocha.
Maine muskuraaya—
"605."
Ananya ke face par smile aayi—
"Finally 600+…"
Maine calmly bola—
"Aur yeh bas start hai."
Ananya hans padi—
"Ab tum dangerous ho gaye ho."
Par iss baar mujhe koi farak nahi pada
ki Ananya ka score kya hai.
Kyuki ab mujhe focus clear tha—
khud par.
Raat ko diary mein maine likha—
"Aaj maine comparison chhoda…
aur control wapas le liya."
Usne neeche ek aur line add ki—
"Pressure tab tak strong hota hai,
jab tak tumhe apni strength yaad nahi hoti."
Mai bed par leta…
Aur aankhen band karte hue bas ek thought—
"Main kisi se peeche nahi hoon…
main apne raaste par hoon."
Aur iss baar…
Maime sach mein feel kiya—
growth.
"Jab tum dusron se compete karte ho,
toh tum limited ho jaate ho…
par jab tum khud se compete karte ho,
toh tum limitless ban jaate ho."
"Competition can inspire you, but comparison can break you. Focus on becoming better than yesterday, not better than someone else."💗✨